Evenflo Maestro Sport Review

The Evenflo Maestro has long been a popular forward facing only combination car seat. It’s gained quite a following as a lightweight, easy to install car seat for travel. Evenflo has updated this old favorite with a few new features, including updated cupholders and a much larger belt path. But luckily the Maestro Sport is just as versatile and affordable as the original!

CSFTL Quick Stats

Lower anchor weight limit: 50 pounds

Forward facing weight range: 22 to 50 pounds

Forward facing height range: 28 to 50 inches

High back booster weight range: 40 to 110 pounds

High back booster height range: 44 to 57 inches

Lowest harness position: 13 inches

Highest harness position: 18.5 inches

Booster belt guide position: 19 inches

Lower anchors permitted in booster mode

Expiration: 6 years

Measurements

Width at widest point (shoulder area and cup holders): 19 inches

Two position crotch strap: 4 inches and 6 inches from the back of the seat pan

Seat pan depth: 14 inches

Weight: 9 pounds

Features

Cupholders

Lightweight for travel

FAA approved in harness mode

Easy care cover

Budget friendly

Red tether to promote tether usage

Assembly

Evenflo Maestro Sport assembly requires a screwdriver

Assembling the Maestro Sport involves a screwdriver and a bit of effort before it’s ready to ride. The cup holders are required — they arrive detached from the seat and must be assembled before the seat can be used.

The registration form, instructions for installing the cupholders, and the screws for attaching the cupholders are all attached to the harness. The cupholders must be screwed in before using the seat, so don’t lose track of the screws!

Caution: when attaching the cup holders, don’t overtighten the screws.

Unique Features

Evenflo Maestro Sport top tether

The Maestro Sport features Evenflo’s brand new bright red tether anchor connector. We love it because the bright color indicates that it’s a critical piece of the car seat.

Using the top tether with forward facing harnessed car seats provides optimal safety — attaching that top tether can reduce head excursion by 6-8 inches in a crash. A recent study by Safe Kids Worldwide showed that 64 percent of parents were not using the top tether so we’re very excited about this small but critical change.

Evenflo stated, “We hope that by making this safety feature a more visible color and sharing this important information with our consumers, we can help to improve the use of this feature.”

We applaud Evenflo for taking this step to highlight this crucial safety feature. The red tether is also a bit smaller than the previous version of Evenflo’s tether and we found that the smaller size makes it work better in some tricky tethering situations, like trucks that have fabric loops for tethers.

Ginormous Belt Path

The Maestro Sport’s ginormous belt path

If you remember the Maestro of old, you might recall the way the slightly-too-small-for-most-adults belt path scraped many a hand during the installation process. We sure do.

Well! The Maestro Sport changes that with an expanded belt path that makes accessing the area a breeze! My entire hand fits easily into the belt path. This small change is a huge change to anyone who emerged from an installation with scraped hands.

Head Pillow

Evenflo Maestro Sport head pillow

The Maestro Sport includes a head pillow, but the manual has no guidelines regarding its use. We reached out to Evenflo — they let us know that the pillow is optional, but if it’s used it must be in the slot above the harness slot in use. We’d love to see this information clarified in the manual.

Installation: Harnessed Mode

Vehicle Seat Belt

Evenflo Maestro Sport

Installation with the vehicle seat belt is straightforward and quite simple. We installed the Maestro Sport in a variety of vehicles and did not come across any issues with this installation method. Loosely attach the top tether first so it doesn’t get lost behind the seat. Then, pull back the cover to expose the belt path to help get a tight install. Once the seat is installed, remove the slack from the top tether.

Lower Anchors

The lower anchor weight limit for the Maestro Sport is 50 pounds, so the seat can be installed with the lower anchors for the entire duration of its harnessed use. This makes the Maestro Sport a great option for vehicles that have inflatable seat belts since most vehicles with this type of seat belt don’t allow for seat belt installations — lower anchors must be used instead (as always, consult both your car seat and your vehicle manual to confirm this restriction for your situation).

Installation with the lower anchors is easy. Thread the lower anchor webbing through the belt path, then attach the hooks to the vehicle’s lower anchors. Tighten the lower anchor strap by pulling up beside the seat or expose the belt path by pulling back the cover, then tighten the strap by pulling it back through the belt path.

We did come across an issue in one vehicle with the lower anchor adjuster reaching the belt path, which prevented a secure install. We resolved this situation by switching to a vehicle seat belt installation.

Fit to Child: Harnessed Mode

4 Years Old

Evenflo Maestro Sport 4 years old

This model is a petite 4 year old. She weighs 29 pounds and is 38.5 inches tall. She was very excited to test out the seat. She liked the plushness of the fabric and did not have any complaints!

6 Years Old

Evenflo Maestro Sport 6 Years Old

Our 6 year old model weighs 49 pounds and is 49.5 inches tall. He is right at the height and weight limits of the seat for harness mode but still fits comfortably. His ears are below the top of the headrest so he’s got a teeny bit of growing room left.

Evenflo Maestro Sport 6 Years Old

He typically rides in a high back booster seat, but was on board for testing out the harness. He was surprised he still fit because he is too tall to fit properly in some harnessed car seats anymore.

Converting to Booster Mode

Evenflo Maestro Sport: converting to booster mode

Converting the seat to booster mode is simple and takes about 3 minutes from start to finish.

To convert the seat to booster mode, begin by disconnecting the harness from the splitter plate on the back of the seat’s shell and pulling the harness through the harness slots on the front of the seat.

Then, remove the cover and thread the harness back through the harness slots and reattach the harness to the splitter plate. Store the chest clip and the buckles in the provided cubbies located near the bottom of both sides of the seat. Remove the crotch buckle and flip the seat over to thread the crotch buckle back through the seat upside down. Finally, replace the cover and the Maestro Sport is ready to roll in booster mode!

The lower anchors are permitted in booster mode to prevent the seat from becoming a projectile in the event of a crash. If you decide to not use them, ensure the booster is buckled when not in use.

Pro tip: Peeling back the cover from one side of the car seat saves time and effort when converting to booster mode.

Fit to Child: Booster Mode

6 Years Old

Evenflo Maestro Sport 6 years old

Here is our 6 year old model again. He remains 49 pounds and 49.5 inches tall. He enjoyed trying booster mode since that’s how he typically rides in the car. He was able to buckle the Maestro Sport without issue. He has some room to grow in booster mode. Once he outgrows the single position belt guide, the manual permits routing the vehicle seat belt over the Maestro’s headrest so he’d have a little additional growing room if the vehicle seat belt still fits him properly in that configuration.

Travel

Since the seat weighs in at only 9 pounds, it is an excellent option for travel. It can be used on a plane in harness mode. Like all booster seats, it’s not approved for air travel without the harness since airplanes only have lap belts and booster seats require a lap and shoulder belt.

Important Information: Where to Find

Manual Storage

Evenflo Maestro Sport: manual storage

The manual was a little unclear because the photos pointed to the lower anchor connector storage locations. We reached out to Evenflo about this — they clarified that the manual should be rolled and stored under the seat shell near the lower anchor connector storage.

Date of Manufacture and Expiration

Evenflo Maestro Sport date of manufacture label

The manufacture date and expiration date are both located on a label on the backside of the seat’s shell.

FAA Approval

Evenflo Maestro Sport FAA approval label

The Maestro Sport is FAA approved in harness mode. It is not FAA approved in booster mode. The FAA label is located on the backside near the bottom of the seat.

Overall Thoughts

The Maestro Sport is a welcome update to an old favorite. While the harness mode weight limit is lower than some other combination car seat options, it works for a variety of children in harness mode. The booster fit can be hit or miss, but we encountered none of the vehicle seat belt retraction issues that can be a problem for some combination seats in booster mode. At this price point, we are glad to be able to recommend the Maestro Sport for families who need a budget-friendly, lightweight forward facing only car seat.

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Disclaimer

All CSFTL website contributors are Nationally Certified Child Passenger Safety Technicians. However, our reviews and educational materials are OUR opinions and are not that of Safe Kids, NHTSA, or anyone other than us. We are not liable for anything anyone says or does as a result of reading our opinions on this site.

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